You Flatter Me
by Amelia Strange
Summary: Troy stays with Gabriella the night before she goes to Stanford. One shot, very fluffy.


**Okay, I know this is cheesy. It's basically a fluffy one-shot about Troy and Gabriella. Enjoy, you know you all secretly love them.**

Troy watched Gabriella run around her room. It was almost three in the morning, and she was off to Stanford the next day. He stood in the doorway to her bedroom, just watching her go. She was almost as beautiful crazy and wild as she was calm and collected.

"Okay," she said, "It's taken several hours, but I'm almost all packed."

Troy smiled at her and shook his head. "Gabi, the drive tomorrow is going to be long and boring. Don't you want to be rested?"

"Right," Gabriella said, shaking her head at Troy. He could be so darn logical sometimes. "I guess. What time is it?"

"Two fifty-five," Troy whispered, "in the morning."

Suddenly, the fatigue hit Gabriella like a rock. "Yeah, I am tired. But I'm hyperactive at the same time. Everything's changing. I need to talk. But I need to sleep." She wrung her hands. "Dammit Troy, I'm a mess."

"Come on," he said, taking her in to his arms. "Lie down. With me. On your bed. In a completely platonic and non-sexual way. Take a power nap for a few hours, then wake up. We can talk over sunrise."

"Sure," Gabriella said, "I guess this is the first time I'm really sleeping with you." She winked at him. He pulled her close to him and kissed her.

"I'm going to miss that," she said as she snuggled up in his arms. "I might have to take a shorter power nap."

Troy rolled his eyes. "Oh, Gabi. What are we going to do with you?"

"A goodnight kiss?"

"If I must," Troy said, gently kissing her lips, and then her cheek, and then her forehead. "See you in the morning, my angel."

Gabriella almost had a witty retort to that, but as soon as she closed her eyes sleep completely consumed her. She sighed softly as she drifted off.

Troy watched her sleep for the longest time. She was finally resting and beautiful, and he could appreciate that in her after her packing frenzy. Suddenly, it occurred to him to do something he hadn't done in a while.

"Dear God," he started. He and his parents had gone to church many times when he was much, much younger but their religion had become a less important aspect of their lives as time went on. "I know I forget how to do this, but I guess I just want to say thanks. Thank you for this brown haired angel that is lying here with me."

He sighed, paused for a second and went on.

"She is the most beautiful person that I have ever met. She's my best friend. My love. I don't know what I would do without her. Losing her would be like losing my life, because she is my life. She's patient. Understanding. She'll stay with me through all the ups and downs that life will undoubtedly throw at us. I know that we're going to be far apart next year, but I truly think that we're strong enough. Dear God, I need you to grant us more strength. I need you to give me the strength and the presence of mind to finally be able to know that I can spend the rest of my life with her. Give us a life together. Me and my brown haired angel." He paused slightly. "Amen."

He kissed Gabriella on the forehead once more and then let sleep take him away too.

It was dawn, close to six o'clock when they both woke up. Gabriella smiled at Troy and said, "Good morning, my blue eyed angel."

He sighed. "You heard that? You, my love, are a way better fake sleeper than I give you credit for."

"I think you have a lot of presence of mind already," she said, suddenly serious.

"Gabi, I know how you feel; I just need some time to figure things out…"

"I know," she said. "And I know that in our time, we're going to love each other just like it was meant to be. I think praying is ineffective because you can ultimately choose whether you get the gifts you ask for from that higher power."

Troy shook his head. "I'm a lapsed Catholic. I don't quite know what I was thinking there."

"It's okay," Gabriella said, "I still love you just as much as I did. It's sweet."

"Thanks," said Troy. And they kissed again. Softly and gently and sweetly, just as it had always been. "Thank you, my brown eyed angel."

"You flatter me, Troy Bolton," Gabriella said, "But I love you anyways."


End file.
